Spain Is The Best Place to Live In Europe!



Spain has been ranked as the best place to live in Europe whilst the UK and Ireland ranked much lower, according to a recent poll. The uSwitch.com Quality of Life Index has said that British families are worse off than some of their fellow Europeans when it comes to the cost of fuel, quality of healthcare, life expectancy, education, retirement age, working hours and holiday entitlement.

The poll said that while British families have highest net income after tax (£35,730 against average of £25,404), they face the highest prices in Europe for diesel, second highest prices for unleaded petrol, and third highest spend on gas and electricity, despite prices in other European countries like Spain, rising significantly in the last year. Early retirement is a luxury many can’t afford in the UK as the country will soon have the highest retirement age of 66 compared to Spain’s age of 62 and Poland’s age of 58.



80% More Sunshine in Spain



Although the UK’s working hours are in line with the European average, British workers suffer the shortest holiday entitlement, with a whole week below the average. Unsurprisingly, Britain receives 80% less sunshine than Spain and 17% below the European average. The findings confirm what many analysts in the UK have been suspecting for a while and alongside a warning that the price of goods will continue to grow in the coming months as the country battles against the recession, this will do little to move the UK ahead in the rankings for some time. Spain took the top spot in the poll despite families earning an annual net income of only £16,789 which is £8,500 below the average and less than half that of the UK.



Lifestyle Factors



Spain fared well in most categories, with low taxation and cheaper essential goods. The quality of life in Spain is boosted further by higher than average life expectancy, the most hours of sunshine and a generous holiday allowance. France came second in the index, boasting the second highest spend on healthcare and faring better than most when it comes to the cost of goods, taxes, hours of sunshine and the highest holiday entitlement in Europe of a whopping 40 days. The uSwitch.com study closely examined 19 factors in order to understand where the UK sits in relation to nine other major countries across Europe. Variables such as net income, taxes and the cost of essential goods were examined alongside lifestyle factors (hours of sunshine, holiday entitlement, working hours and life expectancy) to provide a complete picture of the quality of life experienced in each country.



Positive Signs



Ann Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, says: “The UK average wage may be substantially more than that of our European neighbours but, when it comes to quality of life, the British remain the ‘sick people of Europe’” She continued: “With the global economy stuck in recession, British households are facing huge financial pressure as take home pay stagnates, inflation continues to rise, and economic growth and house prices fall.